I am fairly certain I've mentioned I am a lip balm fanatic. I have been since my early teens, and I wear it all the time, even under lipstick. My favorite, by far, is Camellia Balm by Julie Hewett. It comes in stick form, plain and sheer, packaged in her basic black lipstick tubes. It also comes potted. With a tint.

This product is amazing, a true staple. The texture is silky, and it sinks in as it warms up on the skin, but it still leaves behind some shine. This lip balm is truly hall of fame and made it into my 2011 favorites. There's no doubt it will also be among my 2012 favorites. And 2013 and ...

Rose has very subtle pigment. It shows up as a light glowy pink on my medium-pigmented, mauvish lips.

Ruby, on the other hand, is surprisingly pigmented for such a sheer wash of moisture.

Obligatory white paper swatch: Rose and Ruby

I recently returned from a few weeks of living on the beach surrounded by woods, so I didn't need much in terms of makeup. I lived among the mosquitoes, ducks, loons, fish, egrets, and seals in Julie Hewett Camellia balms—day and night. Now that I am back in my real world, among human creatures, I find this lip balm is outstanding at sheering out matte lipsticks that I love but which can feel a bit dry as they sit on my lips throughout the day.

Get thee to the Julie Hewett web site and buy some Camellia balm. Stat! And I highly recommend subscribing to their newletter so you can be notified of any product launches and sales.

Thursday, August 2, 2012

When I was last at the Chanel counter, I picked up a new Glossimer in the color Amour (166). Much to my delight when I arrived home, I noticed the sales associate had tucked a tiny gift version into my bag.

Amour was part of the the Roses Ultimes de Chanel collection last winter. According to the online literature, the model below is wearing Amour over Chanel's Pink Sugar Lip Pencil (which also contains shimmer). And, yes, they do look that beautiful together.

For some reason the promo picture reminds me of a Kate Bush album cover.

When I look through the tube, I see a cool pinkish peach, or maybe when I turn it just so, the color appears more as a sheer, slightly-bright coral.

Pretty

Some Glossimers are very shimmery, but Amour's glitter factor is more subtle.

Bottom line: Gorgeous, especially this time of year when the made-up world is wearing bronzes and peaches.

All photos mine except for the Chanel promo and Kate bush album cover. Obviously.